1. Field of Industrial Application
The present invention relates to the suspension of an automobile or the like, and more particularly relates to a fitting construction for a stabiliser of a vehicle suspension.
2. Prior Art
Already well known as a suspension for a vehicle such as an automobile is a suspension such as a MacPherson strut suspension having: a shock absorber pivotally attached to the vehicle body at the upper end and supporting rotatably the vehicle wheel at the lower end, a suspension arm pivotally coupled between the lower end of the shock absorber and the vehicle body and guiding the vertical displacement of the vehicle wheel, and a link pivotally coupled between the lower end of the shock absorber and the vehicle body and governing movement of the vehicle wheel in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle; such a suspension has been widely adopted as a rear suspension of various vehicles.
In such a suspension, a stabiliser is generally incorporated to increase the roll rigidity of the vehicle and improve the steering stability of the vehicle. The stabiliser is a rodlike elastic member, having a central rod portion oriented laterally of the vehicle, and two arm portions provided at each end of the central rod portion and integral therewith, and forming substantially the shape of three sides of a rectangle; at two positions on the central rod portion close to the arm portions it is supported rotatably about its own axis from the vehicle, the end of each of the two arm portions is coupled to the suspension arm, and when the vehicle is for example rolling the arm portions pivot relatively about the axis of the central rod portion, whereby the central rod portion is elastically twisted, and the suspension arms are urged toward their normal positions by the thus generated spring force.
In order to improve the efficacy of the stabiliser incorporated into such a suspension, it is preferable for the ends of the arms portions of the stabiliser to be coupled at points as far from the point of pivotal attachment to the vehicle body of the suspension arm as possible. By thus improving the efficacy of the stabiliser the vehicle steering stability is further improved, and excessive elastic deformation of the rubber bushes incorporated in the pivots at the ends of the suspension arm caused by the reaction of the stabiliser arm portions is avoided; with the object of improving vehicle ride by these means it has already been practised in some vehicles to couple the stabiliser portion end to the shock absorber by means of a coupling link at one end pivotally attached to the stabiliser arm portion end, and at the other end pivotally attached to a bracket which is rigidly fixed to the shock absorber cylinder, as for example shown in FIG. 2 of the Japanese Utility Model Application Number Sho-59-149744 (1984) which is an application by the same applicant as the applicant of the present application.